Sopwith Motorsports Television Productions Archives

Birth of the Fox Mustang

. They won’t get any cheaper than they are right now. Ford’s famous Fox Mustangs, built from 1979 through 1993, are moving up from the bottom of their value curve. The Fox Mustangs derived their nickname from the 1978 Ford Fairmont, which had been internally designated as the “Fox Project” within Ford’s management and design teams. Since the Mustang borrowed the Fairmont’s platform, the “Fox” name was naturally adopted for the 79-93 Mustangs within Ford and eventually by the public as well. Ford president Lee Iacocca had overseen the design of the original Mustang in 1964 as well as its Read More

Cox Gets Sneak Preview of Spectacular Mustang Collection

. “The Kenny and Marilyn Newcombe Mustang Collection is one of the finest collections of Fox body Ford Mustangs I’ve ever seen,” Mecum co-host Stephen Cox said after reviewing the cars last week in Atlanta. “Leave it to the Mecum crew to consign a historic collection of this importance. They’ve found something pretty special.” Ford manufactured what is now called the “Fox body” Mustang from 1979 through 1993, making it the longest running generation of Mustang to ever grace the roads. The Euro styling appealed to early 1980’s car buyers, and the powerful 235 horsepower 5 liter engine appealed to Read More

NPD Presents Rally North America, Season 3

The MavTV television network has begun airing the third season of Rally North America. The premier episode of Season 3 can be seen on Sunday evening, February 13, at 6:30 pm Eastern time. This season’s rally follows over 80 teams as they drive the most beautiful roads in Wisconsin and Michigan on an automotive scavenger hunt to benefit Race to Erase MS, which raises funds to search for a cure to Multiple Sclerosis. The program is sponsored in part by National Parts Depot, providing restoration parts for classic automobiles. The six-episode series continues weekly on MavTV at 6:30 pm Eastern Read More

Podium for Cox and AOA Racing at 14 Hours of Road Atlanta

After TravelCamp Racing’s EC class Mustang broke a transmission in the opening laps of last weekend’s 14 Hours of Road Atlanta sportscar endurance race, Indianapolis racing driver Stephen Cox was left without a ride. By lunch time he had another one. Road Atlanta is the home track of Kennesaw, Georgia’s AOA Racing and the team put together a spontaneous deal to have Cox join as the fifth driver in their Mazda MX-5. Nine hours and two transmissions later, the team scored a third place finish in EC class to earn a spot on the Champcar podium. “I didn’t know anyone Read More

What I Learned From a Chassis Bracing System

. Rebuilding My Totally-Not-Collectible Mustang, Part VIII The Stephen Cox Blog is Presented by National Parts Depot Guess what I just learned after 40 years of driving Mustangs? The stock suspension on an early Fox body Mustang actually isn’t that bad. It’s certainly not great, but I was shocked to learn that it’s actually somewhat serviceable as far as 1980’s technology goes. Known as Blue Thunder, my 1980 Mustang has never had anything other than factory-recommended springs and struts. I’ve found them perpetually unsatisfactory with too much body roll, poor turn-in on corner entry and insufficient insulation from the bumps Read More

Rebuilding My Totally-Not-Collectible Mustang, Part VII

. The Stephen Cox Blog is presented by National Parts Depot Holy cow. I may have to give this series a new title. For thirty years no one cared about the early Fox body Mustangs. Then I took my 1980 Fox in for rust-proofing last week and the entire staff quit working and walked out to the parking lot to see it. Times certainly are changing. The early Fox body Mustangs are experiencing an unprecedented resurgence in popularity and price. All those 1981 Cobra owners who had their sanity questioned for decades are starting to look pretty smart. I bought Read More

This Is How We Save Short Track Racing

. The Stephen Cox Blog is presented by JR Fastener Corporation Ask any race promoter or track owner and you’ll hear the same term again and again… “car count.” Auto racing lives and dies by car count. Show me a track or series that gets 100 cars every night and I’ll show you a successful enterprise. If a series or track cannot attract cars, it cannot survive. Race fans don’t show up to see an empty track. It’s competition that fills the grandstands. And each car entered in the night’s races also represents a separate revenue opportunity that track owners Read More

Sta-Bil, Ovals Return to 2021 Racing Schedule

. Sta-bil brand fuel stabilizer racing driver Stephen Cox will open the 2021 season with a returning sponsor, twenty-one races and eight motorsports events on his schedule. The season’s ten road races include a stop at Gingerman Raceway in Michigan where Cox holds the WRL track record followed by a visit to Pike’s Peak International Raceway in July where his Braunschweig Racing team finished third overall in last year’s Gridlife Alpine Horizon Festival. The final road course event is at Oklahoma’s Hallett Motor Racing Circuit for the World Racing League’s annual October Rush, which Cox has won twice. The oval Read More

AC Cobra Goes Electric?

The Stephen Cox Blog is presented by “Corvette Miracle: The 1970 24 Hours of Daytona” Just when you thought 2020 couldn’t get any wierder, along comes one of the world’s finest classic cars. With an electric motor. No kidding. Not even a hybrid. AC Cobra of England, purveyers of an automotive mega-legend for 58 years, will celebrate their anniversary by building precisely 58 examples of their all new AC Cobra Series 1 Electric for select customers who are willing to fork over around $186,000 for an amazing new version of an old classic. The Series 1 Electric is available in Read More

Two Podiums for Team 104+ at Alpine Horizon

In their first appearance in the Grid Life GLTC racing series, the combined efforts of Braunschweig Racing, 104+ Performance and Sopwith Motorsports achieved a pair of third-place finishes and two fourth-place finishes last weekend at the Alpine Horizon Festival. The 1.3-mile road course at Pike’s Peak International Raceway provided tight racing and endless entertainment throughout the three-day event. In his first-ever race at the track, 104+ Performance driver Stephen Cox went from ninth on the grid to third at the checkered flag after leading nearly half of the race. “There was a lot of confusion on the start after a Read More

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